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19. Reality on set…

It is quite clear from the above video, that not all is going to plan on set. If we look back at the previous 72hr project’s, James has felt the fear of failure before. Is this time worse? or is the stress just building? Working behind the scenes is like looking through a glass window. Although we are part of the action, we are also quite distant due to communicating with the public and spreading the word.

We see updates and are made aware of progress but are not able to interrupt and ask the important questions…How is it going? Do you think we are going to finish? What’s gone wrong for you?

We grab as many people as possible but those who are highly involved in the project and have the most stakes, are the people who are too busy to stop and chat to a camera which is very understandable. But how then do we get the full story from behind our glass?

Well we begin by visiting the sets as much as possible and film what’s going on. Like a fly on the wall we try not to interrupt our surroundings but sometimes it cannot be helped. If people are available, we interview them to get there opinions on the project. However, with a large project like this it is clear that the lower down the film hierarchy you are, the less information you know. This is clear from the interviews we have completed. Production assistants feel the project is going smoothly. It is tiring work but they are all enjoying themselves. Speak to an editor and you get another story. There is a lot of waiting around for footage from the set and sometimes no work to do.

When we spoke to Joe and Dom, it was clear of the high stakes they had invested in this project and the completion. However what the interview does not show, is the time we had to wait for them to be available and the stress they were clearly under. Our interview was a break for them and a time to relax.

In our recap videos we have attempted to show the balance of stress and tiredness with the enjoyment of the production. This is extremely hard work for everyone involved which is so clear in James’ update.

We have yet to mention the cast. They are also aware of the huge task and are under pressure to perform immediately. They are all incredibly prepared and memorize a lot of information to create as little takes as possible. They do relish the challenge though and wish to see the project completed.

This is a new experience for many of the cast and crew and none of us want to see it fail! We want you to see the reality of this project and the hard work that has gone in to it. The office has also been working around the clock. Eye lids are beginning to droop due to the lack of sleep. However every obstacle that has appeared has been overcome.

I think it’s clear that organisation could be improved upon in some areas but this is a large crew to deal with and to keep a clear line of communication is almost impossible. As with any film project there is a possibility of running over the schedule. This happened yesterday and will almost certainly happen today. Is due to a lack of organisation, lack of crew, lack of control? Or have we simply taken on too much?

These are the questions we will be able to debate when the project is over and look for ways to improve. This will lead into the next 72hr project. Or will we find another aspect to explore? Right now it doesn’t matter. We are all working incredibly hard to get this completed and hopefully see that smile on James’ face again!